Ancient Anguish

Ancient Anguish (AA) is a text-based fantasy role-playing game, a MUD that has been free to play since its public launch on February 2, 1992. It was created in 1991 by Balz "Zor" Meierhans and Olivier "Drake" Maquelin, and has relied on player donations for support since 1994.

Instead of linking discrete areas, the game uses a map-coordinate system with nearly 10,000 rooms, designed to create a more seamless, immersive world called Oerthe. The game strives for a "describe-all" policy, meaning every object, item, or feature should engage as many senses as possible, though older areas may not fully meet current standards. The game is also noted for incorporating adult themes.

In late 1993, the Swiss university hosting the game, Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule Zürich, threatened to shut it down due to excessive bandwidth use. Players donated over US$7,000 to buy a SparcStation 2, moving the MUD to Washington, D.C. At that time, Zor, the chief administrator, gave up his singular authority, handing control to a newly formed Senate of Wizards, with Amante as its President. The Senate appoints Archwizards for Law, Balance, Quality Control, Education, Mudlib, World and Map, and Driver. In 1995, Amante stepped down, and the Senate took full control, operating with 3 to 12 members who rotate over time.

The game has been hosted by several providers: Pacific Rim Networks (mid-1995 to 1996), Chaco Inc. (mid-1996 to July 1997), InReach Internet (July 1997 to Feb 2006), LocalLink.net (Feb 2006 to August 2008), Colocation America (August 2008 to December 2024), and Ionos.com (December 2024 to present).

Though never as populous as some MUDs, Ancient Anguish remains one of the more popular LPMuds. It was heavily played by the original EverQuest design team, as noted by designer Ryan Palacio. It also served as the basis for one of the earliest ethnographies of virtual worlds and a master's thesis on sociolinguistics. Raph Koster, lead designer of Ultima Online, played Ancient Anguish for inspiration while creating LegendMUD, which later influenced Ultima Online.

Volunteer "wizards" continually add new code. Players can become a wizard after earning 1 million experience points, completing a set number of quests, and earning exploration points (sometimes called "Gaius Points"). These points are gained by exploring, prodding, and investigating rooms or completing mini-quests, with vague hints from the character Gaius and no direct statistic available. New wizards undergo training to learn coding and build new areas, which are validated for thematic, quality, and balance standards before opening to all players.

In late 2005, player levels were expanded from 19 to 50. The move to the Michigan server in 2006 introduced "Anarchy Mode," where all rules on player killing, multiplaying, and wizard interference were suspended. Since player files were backed up, this had no lasting effect and proved popular enough that the Senate considered hosting regular Anarchy events; the Anarchy port was used for parts of the AAlympics competition. The move also changed mandatory reboots from 25 to 49 hours, tested in late April and then made permanent. These reboots clear accumulated items, restore the world to a default state, and require characters to regain equipment, though skills, stats, and gold are retained.

In May 2006, a new continent named Infidian opened after several years, nearly doubling the available landmass and easing overcrowding on the main continent of Anguish.